


Chasing the Sun

by Rose_SK



Category: Marvel, Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Angst, Avengers: Endgame (Movie), Avengers: Endgame (Movie) Spoilers, Canon Divergence - Avengers: Endgame (Movie), Character Death Fix, Domestic Fluff, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, F/M, Fluff, Good Loki (Marvel), Hurt Tony Stark, M/M, Past Pepper Potts/Tony Stark, Past Relationship(s), Spoilers, Tony Stark Has A Heart, Tony Stark Needs a Hug
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-15
Updated: 2019-05-15
Packaged: 2020-03-05 21:58:46
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,383
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18837592
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rose_SK/pseuds/Rose_SK
Summary: WARNING: THIS FIC CONTAINS AVENGERS ENDGAME SPOILERS. IF YOU HAVEN`T HAD THE CHANCE TO SEE THE MOVIE YET, PLEASE HEED THE TAGS!!Tony always knew he would go down fighting.So when Strange locked eyes with him on the battlefield, holding up a single finger indicating that this right there was the one reality in which they would defeat Thanos, Tony knew exactly what he had to do.





	Chasing the Sun

**Author's Note:**

> I tried to write a fluffy fix-it, but I just can't stay away from a little angst. It makes the fluff so much sweeter <3
> 
> Hope you enjoy this one, guys. My last Frostiron got such good reviews, it convinced me to write some more. The Marvel fandom is awesome. I wonder why I waited so long to write for you guys!
> 
> Enjoy! 
> 
> xoxo

Tony always knew he would go down fighting.

So, when Strange locked eyes with him on the battlefield, holding up a single finger indicating that _this right there_ was the one reality in which they would defeat Thanos, Tony knew exactly what he had to do. Confidently, he walked towards the purple Titan, intent on killing him no matter what. Tony did not feel scared, because he knew that the outcome of this battle was written in the stars. They would win, he would make sure of it. Whatever it took, they would defeat Thanos. As Tony stared intently at the enemy, he focused on remembering all the people he was doing this for.

Pepper and Morgan, the two women he loved more than anything in the world, even if his marriage to Pepper had not lasted as long as he had hoped. He was just glad they had remained friends after the divorce.

He was doing this for Peter, the son he never had. Tony wished he could have spent more time with the boy, tell him how glad he was that he was alive. Tony had hoped for Peter to become an adoptive big brother to Morgan after the great battle against Thanos. They could have been a family, the three of them. A broken one, perhaps, but a family nonetheless.

He was doing this for his partners in crime, the Avengers, his friends. Cap, Sam, Clint, Bruce, Bucky, Wanda, Thor... He was doing this for Natasha, God bless her soul. Even more so for Nat, who would have sacrificed herself without a second thought to save humanity. Tony was thinking about those who had stood by his side, who had fought with him despite their differences, who had died for the cause.  The Avengers, Earth’s heroes.

Tony was also doing this for Loki, the enemy who had become a friend, who had then become a lover. The redeemed destroyer of New-York, the child who had felt so unloved and misunderstood by his own family that he had forgotten how to love himself. A contested member of the Avengers, but an Avenger in his own right.

The memory of Loki triggered a blind rage in him, a rage mingled with pain, a rage he did not know he was capable of. Loki had sacrificed himself, too. Loki had died trying to kill this monster. Loki and Nat both died as heroes, and Tony would do anything in his power to make sure their deaths were not in vain.

Tony was not entirely sure what happened once he had pried the Infinity gauntlet off Thanos. He remembered an excruciating pain starting in his right hand and spreading through his arm, his chest, his limbs… he remembered the blast that followed, which made the world go black for a split second. Had it not been for his suit, Tony would have exploded, he was sure of it. Everything hurt. He could not move, probably because every bone in his body had been broken by the sheer force that had propelled him away from Thanos. Then came into vision the faces of Pepper, Peter, Sam. Blurry, yes, but at least Tony got to see them one last time. He got to hear their voices one last time. He would die a happy man knowing that he would leave behind a free world.

In his last minutes, Tony thought he saw wisps of gold and emerald dance before his eyes. Loki’s colours. He briefly felt himself smile at the memory of his raven-haired lover, whose eyes always seemed to hold a mischievous glint in them. Loki would have made a nice addition to his little family. Loki would have loved Morgan and Peter, Tony was sure of it. He would have protected them fiercely like they were his own. They could have been happy together had it not been for Thanos trying to destroy the world. With the image of the family that would never be, Tony closed his eyes and succumbed to the cold embrace of death.

 OoO

Tony opened his eyes, blinking several times to adjust to the brightness of the room. The first thing he felt were the pins and needles in his fingertips and toes. His attempt to wiggle them failed miserably thanks to his weakened muscles. Even the action of moving his head caused a sharp pain to shoot through his skull, like someone had pierced the skin with a hot iron. The intensity of the sensation caused Tony to shut his eyes and groan loudly, cursing under his breath although the words came out slurred and incoherent. His own voice sounded distant to his ears, emphasised by the prolonged tinnitus. Memories of the battle against Thanos flooded his mind suddenly, playing out like short snippets in front of Tony’s eyes and making him feel dizzy.

How he was still alive was beyond him.

“ _To… Tony… Mr Stark_?” a distant voice called out to him, but Tony could not tell which direction it came from, or put a face to the voice.

 _“Easy, kid… he’s still weak,”_ another, deeper voice this time, spoke. The tone had something paternal about it. It was a voice that radiated authority. Cap? Maybe. Tony found it hard to think.

 _“I saw his fingers twitch! We need to tell everyone!_ ” the first voice said excitedly. Tony recognised the voice as belonging to Peter, and instantly relief washed over him. The kid was alright, and sounded like his usual hyperactive self. He was safe. They were all safe thanks to him.  

_“Not quite everyone yet, kiddo. He’s barely awake.”_

“’m… fine…,” Tony croaked as he blinked his eyes open again, trying to move as little as possible. The vision of Cap and Peter warmed his heart, and he even managed a tight smile. Fuck, everything hurt. “Lights… bright…”

Peter instantly understood and quickly went to pull the curtains shut until the room was bathed in relative dimness. Tony let out a relieved sigh when his eyes were finally allowed to relax and open fully. His head was still pounding, but not as badly as before. That was a start. Cap’s genuine smile seemed to brighten the room instantly. When was the last time Steve had smiled like that? Tony could not remember.

“How are you feeling, Tony?”

“Like shit.”

“Mr Stark sir, I’m so happy you’re alive. You saved us all, you know that? You’re a hero, you’re _my_ hero. One minute you were dying, and we were all crying, but then Mr Loki appeared and saved you,” Peter babbled excitedly, not even pausing to catch his breath. God damn, that kid talked fast. It took Tony’s mind several seconds to click and understand what Peter was saying.

“Loki?”

“Yes, Mr Loki, sir. Not the one that escaped with the Tesseract in 2012 when you guys went back in time, but the _actual_ Loki. He was never dead, could you believe that? Well actually he was, but it’s a long and complicated story, he’ll tell you all about it. Oh, Mr Stark, you should’ve seen Thor, how happy he was to have his brother back. He _cried_ , Mr Stark, _actually cried_ , real tears and everything. It was kinda funny because Mr Loki looked so uncomfortable, and he didn’t know what to do when everyone hugged him and thanked him for saving your life. Morgan hasn’t left his side, she keeps following him like a shadow, which is hilarious because he’s like the grumpy uncle who doesn’t want to admit he has a soft spot for her, but he does everything she asks of him. I saw her braid his hair yesterday…”

“Peter,” Tony started, sighing in relief when his voice alone caused Peter to pause in his rant. “I’m glad you’re ok, but would you just _shut up_ for one second…”

Tony’s words pulled an amused chuckle from Cap, and tinted Peter’s cheeks an adorable shade of red.

“I did tell you to take it slow, kid,” Cap told the teenager, patting his shoulder comfortingly, “you need to rest. You haven’t left the room in days.”

Despite his everything aching, Tony felt a surge of pride at those words.

“Go to bed, or I’ll kick your ass. I killed Thanos, nothing is impossible anymore,” Tony joked. With great pain, he turned his head ever so slightly so he was looking directly at Peter. The kid would be alright, and that was worth all the pain in the world. “While you’re out, would you find Morgan? I want to see my baby girl.”

“Sure thing, Mr Stark. I’ll go get her straight away,” Peter promised, dashing out of the room and leaving Tony and Cap alone. The blond’s expression was compassionate bordering on pitying, and Tony did not care for it.

“I’m alive, Cap. Get that face off!”

“I wish there was something I could do to make you more comfortable. You look rather tense.”

“You would be too if your whole body had been destroyed by a glorified glove,” Tony sassed his friend. “I just want to see my baby girl and go back to sleep. I’ll be fine in a couple of days.”

“Make that a couple of weeks, Tony. Loki’s been working on healing you with his magic, but he’s still weak from reviving you. It’ll take a while.”

So, Loki had brought him back to life and had been healing him for however long since the battle. The thought warmed his heart, but there were so many questions that he wanted to ask his lover. Where had he been? Why had he not turned up earlier if he was alive? The multitude of unanswered questions was overwhelming, and Tony was growing nervous with every minute that passed. He thought he had forgotten about Loki, he thought he was over him. So why did the thought of seeing him again make his stomach flutter like a school girl? His musing was interrupted by a familiar high-pitched squeal which unmistakably belonged to his most treasured creation. Morgan patted excitedly to the bed and jumped onto Tony, causing him to groan in pain. Tony would have complained, but all that truly mattered to him in that instant was his precious daughter safe and sound in his arms.

“Morgan, daddy is hurt, you need to be careful!” Pepper gently chastised the little girl. Tony managed to raise his arms enough to pull Morgan close, although the hug remained a weak one. His daughter did not seem to mind as she cuddled closer to her dad. Tony noticed Cap discreetly leaving the room to allow the family some privacy.

“It’s okay, Pepper. I wouldn’t have it any other way,” Tony reassured his ex-wife, squeezing her hand reassuringly when Pepper was close enough.

“Daddy you’ve been sleeping for over a week, but Loki was here every day making sure you’re ok,” Morgan explained as the bright brown eyes so like his own stared at him with utter adoration.

“Yes, about that…,” Tony looked up at Pepper questioningly, “is… how is he?”

“Exhausted, mostly,” Pepper admitted with a soft look on her face, “reviving you took a lot out of him. Whenever he’s not sleeping, he’s here healing you. He was so worried that he came too late, but you’re awake now. He’ll be pleased.”

“Daddy, I braided Loki’s hair yesterday,” Morgan told Tony with a wide smile.

“So I’ve been told, munchkin. You should feel honoured, I know for a fact he doesn’t let anybody play with his hair. You must be special,” Tony praised his daughter, relishing in the proud expression on her face as he spoke those words. His heart warmed at the thought of Loki spending time with Morgan, and Morgan enjoying Loki’s company.

“I’ll go tell Loki you’re awake, I think he’ll be happy to see you,” Morgan decided, but before anyone could stop her, she had run out of the room in search for her new best friend. Pepper merely shook her head fondly, still holding Tony’s hand.

“If you need to rest, Loki will understand,” she told him, but Tony shook his head, an action which he instantly regretted when he started feeling dizzy.

“No, I want to see him. I need to see that he’s really here. I’m sorry Pepper, …”

“Don’t be ridiculous, Tony. I know how you felt about Loki when you guys were together, and that doesn’t mean that you never felt the same for me when we were married. I’m not in the least offended. You and I just work better as friends.”

“You’ve always been so understanding. I don’t even deserve you as a friend, yet alone as a wife or as the mother of my child,” Tony told Pepper, who blushed despite the amused smile on her face. She leaned over to place a small kiss on his temple. It did not take long for Morgan to return, dragging a sleepy Loki behind her by the hand. It would not have surprised Tony if the little girl had just burst into Loki’s room and demanded that he follow her at once. Equally, it was perfectly plausible that the God had just followed the tiny human without question, even though he would never admit that.

But Tony knew him better than most.

“Look Loki, daddy’s awake! He’s even talking and everything! I told you it wasn’t a dream, I told you it was possible!” Morgan looked pleased as she bragged about her superior knowledge, but all Loki could do was stare at Tony with wide eyes.

“Anthony…”

The use of his first name spoken with such fondness and gratitude was what broke Tony in the end. He felt his eyes well up with tears, but he made sure to turn away from everyone before they could notice. Tony bit his tongue in a futile attempt to swallow the emotions that threatened to take over his entire being. This was a happy reunion, he should not be crying. He should be laughing, hugging Loki, kissing him. But the memory of his loss was still too painful, and the years of repressed sadness, frustration and guilt finally managed to catch up with Tony. Tears streamed down his cheeks as he felt delicate fingers wrap around his wrist. Loki did not force Tony to look at him or to talk. He just sat next to him in silence, holding his wrist in a comforting gesture just to let Tony know that he was there, and that he had no intention of going anywhere.

“You were dead…,” was all Tony managed to say without sobbing. He could see Loki’s brow furrow out of the corner of his eyes. The broken look in his supposedly dead lover’s eyes testified of how responsible Loki felt for causing Tony so much pain.

“I was. You have to believe me, this was not a trick this time. Thanos did kill me, strangled me to be precise. I was dead, but my magic wasn’t yet. Subconsciously it worked at reviving me, and I never thought that kind of feat was even possible. All I know is that next thing, I was wide awake on that abandoned ship. I was awake, but weak. Reviving myself took up all of my magic, and it took a long time to recharge.”

“Why didn’t you come back? We were fighting Thanos, we needed your help! Why didn’t you come back?” Tony knew his tone sounded accusatory, but he was too confused to apologise. He needed answers. He needed to know why Loki had not instantly returned to him, why he had chosen to let Tony believe he was dead rather than come home to him. The apologetic smile did nothing to alleviate Tony’s anger.

“Anthony, I would’ve. It was not a lack of want, but a lack of magic that made my coming back to you impossible. I had no way of communicating with any of you, I couldn’t fly the ship because it had broken down, and my magic was useless to me at this point. So I bided my time, and recharged enough magic to travel to a distant planet the name of which I never found out. At least I could sustain myself on the little food I managed to find there. And water, it did have water on it. It took another while for my magic to build up again after that. The slightest use drained me completely. And by the time I managed to get it working like normal, something happened. My body was… disintegrating into dust. And before I knew it, I was gone.”

Realization dawned on Tony as he took in Loki’s words. Thanos snapping his fingers the first time had disintegrated half of the universe’s population, including Loki. Tony’s heart clenched at the thought of his lover, alone on this foreign planet, trying to make sense of why his body was fading away into the wind. Tony wished he had been there, but at the same time he was glad that he did not have to witness his lover disappear before his eyes.   

“So when we reversed everything, you came back as well…,” Tony whispered under his breath, but his words did not escape Loki’s sharp hearing. The God of Mischief nodded.

“I was back on that same planet, and even though I wasn’t sure what had happened, I knew that forces greater than myself had been at work. I reckoned it had something to do with the Infinity Stones. Something changed after that. My magic was stronger, almost like had been… what is the word you always used? Rebooted?”

“Check you using technical jargon,” Tony joked, winking at Loki and pulling a soft chuckle from his former lover. He had forgotten how much he loved that sound.

“My magic was rebooted, I was as strong – or perhaps even stronger than before. I picked up something, like a whisper in the wind. I instantly recognised the dreadful and primitive magic that belongs to Stephen Strange or whatever his name is. I was about to ignore it when I heard your name being spoken. I knew I had to jump into that despicable hole of his to save you, to help you defeat Thanos. And that’s when I appeared on the battle field. I was too late, but then I saw you, hurt and dying… I hoped that my magic would manage to revive you like it did for me.”

“But it drained you again, didn’t it?” Tony asked rhetorically. Loki merely nodded.

“That’s why it took me another week to heal your vital organs and get your bones back into the right places. I’m working on reconstructing skin tissue now. It’s mostly aesthetic work, but seeing as my magic recharges very slowly, it might take another week or two to have you up and functioning normally.”

“Oh Loki,” Tony could not help the snort that escaped him, “honestly you could’ve told me that it would take another year and I would be grateful. At least you guys didn’t take me to hospital. I know I’ll be alright, you’re back now… everything’s gonna be alright.”

Tony intertwined his fingers with Loki’s, squeezing weakly as he felt tiredness take over his body once again. Pepper and Morgan left Loki to work on his patient in peace, but the God did not appear to be in any kind of rush to move. His thumb gently rubbed the back of Tony’s hand as he observed the man with a soft look in his eyes.

“Go to sleep, Anthony. I’ll watch over you.” His words were followed by the softest of kisses placed on Tony’s lips, a kiss which was weakly returned as the human fought against his own tiredness just to taste Loki’s lips a little while longer. Tony felt Loki’s hand cup the side of his face gently, almost as if the God was scared of breaking him.

“Promise you won’t leave me ever again, Lokes…,” Tony demanded sleepily as he broke away from his lover’s lips, barely managing to stifle a yawn as he did so.

“I promise you, my love,” Loki vowed, kissing Tony once again while his nimble fingers brushed through the short locks lovingly, “The sun is finally shining on us again.”


End file.
